Chair.



Patented lune 26, I900.

G H AIR.

(Application filed, App 8, 1900.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(Nu Mndel'.)

I nlllllllllllllllllll l HINHHH /N VENTOI? WITNESSES Jse/zi z [1416714971 ya M/Zm A 770/?N E Y Patented June 26, I900.

,1. M'B'H'UGH. I

CHAIR.

(Application filed Apr. 3, 1900.)

2- Sheets-Sheat 2-,.

(No Model.)

ummu

A 7TOHNE) UNITED "STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH P. MOHUGH, on NEW YORK, N. Y.

CHAIR.

SPECXFICAT IQNforming part of Letters Patent No. 652,737, dated J'un 26, 1900. Application filed April3,1900. Serial No. 11,298. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH P. MCHUGH, a citizen of the United States, anda resident of the borough'of Manhattan, city, county,

and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Chairs and other Articles of Furniture, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompany- IO ing drawings, forming part of this specification.

The object of my invention is the construc tion of a chair or like articleof furniture which when not in use may be compactly I 5 folded or collapsed and which when unfolded or in use shall be not only perfectly stable,

secure, and comfortable, in fact, but which by reason of its noticeable solidity of construction and attractive appearanceshall have a much larger field of usefulness than the ordinary folding furniture. I

My invention consists of the construction, combination, and arrangement'of parts hereinafter shown and described, and specifically pointed out in the claims.

I have illustrated and shall describe my invention herein as embodied in'a folding chair; but it is to be understood that it may be utilized in other articles of furniture.

0 In the drawings, Figure l'is a view in perspective of an arm-chair embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof. Fig. 3 is a plan View in section on the line 3 3, Fig. 2; and Figs. 4 and 5, 6 and 7, and 8 and 5 9 are respectively vertical and horizontal sections showing modifications in the connections between the seat-bars and the uprights of the chair.

Similar reference characters are employed 0 to designate corresponding parts in all the views.

The chair illustrated in the drawings cornprises two rigid side frames, each of which consists of the base A, whichforms a solid support for the chair on each side. To each of the bases A A the front and rear uprights a a. are rigidly secured. The uprights a a are extended above the normal position of the seat to form guides for the seat-bars, as

will be presently described, and also to form side posts for the back and supports for the arms 0?, which, as illustrated, form rigid connections between the uprights, so that each side is substantially'a rigid parallelogram or frame. The upper ends of the rear uprights of the side'framesare connected bya strip B of flexible material, such as leather orsuitable fabric, forming a back piece for the chair, and, if desired, the additional crossstrips 1) b of similar material may also be provided.

The seat 0 is formed of flexible material, preferably similar to that employed for the back, suitably secured at the sides to the seat bars D, Figs. 4 to 9. To the seat-bars D are connected a series of cross-supports E, arranged in pairs. This connection may be rigid, as shown in Figs. 4 and 6, or by'a hinge of any suitable form, as shown in Fig. 8. The supports E are at their opposite ends secured to the base A on the opposite side of the chair by a hinged connection. At their crossingpoints the supportsE are pivotally connected preferably by a bar 6, serving as a pivot cornmon to all the supports E. The uprights a and Ct are provided with recesses or channels F, extending upwardly from the seat, and a slotted plate f, Figs. 7 to 9, is secured-over said recess. The seat-bars D are provided with projections d, which enter the recesses F. These projections d have enlarged heads of greater diameter than the slot in the plate f, and the engagement of the proj ections with the back of the plate holds the ends of the seat-bars in sliding engagement with the uprights a and 'a'. In Figs. 4 and 5 the slotted plate f is dispensed with, and the slot f is formed in the uprights and is enlarged at its upper end to permit the entrance of the projections d. In these views and also in Figs. 0 6 and 7 the supports E are rigidly secured to the seat-bars D,and the bars will consequently turn bodily as the chair is folded, the projections at being rounded to permit such movement. In Fig. 8, however, the projectionsd 5 are square and prevent this turning of the seat-bars, the necessary relative movement of the bars D and the supports E being accomplished by hinging them to each other, as shown. The projections on the ends of the I00 seat-bars D may be formed integrally with the bars, as shown in Figs. e and 5, or may be otherwise constructed-as, for instance, as shown in Fig; 7, in which a flat-headed screw is employed, or as shown in .Fig. 9, in which the projection is formed on a plate, which is inserted in the ends of the seat-bars and secured in place by a screw or other fastening device.

The operation of the chair which I have shown and described is as followsi To fold the chair, the two sides are moved toward each other, and as they approach each other:

the sliding connections between the ends of the seat-bars and the uprights will permit the seat-bars to rise'as the supports E ap-. proach aposition in alinement with each other and the sides come together. To unfold or extend the chair, the sides are moved apart,

the supports E swing toward their formerposition, and the seat-bars descend until the projections on the end thereof reach the lower ends of the slots in the uprights, which will arrest further movement and hold the parts firmly in position.

It is to be understood that many variations in design and details of construction may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention-as, for instance, the crosssupports E may be Varied in number and two or a greater number thereof may be employed, depending on the size and shape of the structure.

Having thus shown and described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

niture, the combination of two flexibly-connected sides, each consisting of front and rear uprights connected with each other and rig-' idly connected with a base, seat-bars, sliding connections between the seat-bars and said uprights and aseries of folding cross-supports connecting each seat-bar with the base of the opposite side, substantially as shown and described.

2. In a folding chair or other article of furniture, the combination of two flexibly-con nected sides, each consisting of front and rear uprights rigidly connected, seat-bars, sliding connections between the seat-bars and said uprights and folding cross-supports connecting each seat-bar with the opposite side, substantially as shown and described.

3. In a folding chair or other article of furniture, the combination of two sides, each consisting of front and rear uprights rigidly con nected with a base, flexible connections between the sides, seat-bars, sliding connections between the seat-bars and said uprights and a plurality of folding cross supports connected with each seat-bar and hinged to the base of the opposite side, substantially as shown and described.

4. In a folding chair or other article of fur niture, the combination of two flexibly-con nected sides, each consisting of front and rear uprights rigidly connected, arms connecting said uprights above the seat, seat-bars, sliding connections between the seat-bars and said uprights and a series of folding crosssupports connected with each seat-bar and hinged to the opposite side, substantially as shown and described.

5. In a folding chair or other article of furnitu re, the combination of two sides, each consisting of two uprights, rigidly connected above the seat by arms, flexible connections between the sides, recesses in said uprights above the seat, seat-bars, projections on the seat-bars engaging with said recesses and a series of folding cross-supports connecting each seat-bar with the opposite side, substan- 1. In a folding chair or other article of fur-;

tially as shown and described.

6. In a folding chair or other article of furniture, the combination of two sides, each con sisting of front and rear uprights rigidly connected with a base, flexible connections between the sides, seat-bars, sliding connections between the seat-bars and said uprights and a series of folding cross-supports hinged to the seat-bars and the base of the opposite side, substantially as shown and described.

JOSEPH P. MCHUGH.

Witnesses:

W. J. H. DUDLEY, E. C. OGoRMAN, F. W. KLEINDIENST. 

